“It was a blast,” Keenum said. “That was probably the most fun I’ve ever had playing football.”

Patrick Edwards had seven receptions for 318 yards and five touchdowns for Houston (8-0, 4-0 Conference USA). Tyler Smith had 170 yards rushing and two rushing and one receiving touchdown for Rice (2-6, 1-4). That included a 97-yard scoring run — the longest TD run in school history.

The Owls led 17-7 late in the first quarter before Keenum threw his first touchdown pass for 57 yards to Edwards. The teams exchanged field goals at the beginning of the second quarter to leave Rice up 20-17.

Keenum then threw three touchdown passes in a six-minute span at the end of the first half to put Houston on top 38-20 and tie the touchdown passes record.

He broke the record on a 41-yard pass to Charles Sims early in the third quarter to push the lead to 45-20. Keenum was 24 of 37 for 534 yards before giving way to backup Cotton Turner with eight minutes remaining.

Keenum, granted a sixth year of eligibility after tearing a knee ligament early last season, needs 267 yards passing to become the FBS’s career leader in passing yards. Former Hawaii star Tim Chang holds the mark of 17,072.

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